Prince of Enchanters
by jaqtkd
Summary: Waiting for Arthur and his friends to be reincarnated again is a boring affair. In the meantime, Merlin keeps himself busy by scrying, travelling and assisting wherever he can. The various schools of magic continue to be a source of great interest and he has a special interest in the one built on his home island; Hogwarts. A set of short stories from my 'Master of Time' series.
1. Chapter 1: Owl Post

_**A/N:**_ _Inspired by a Christmas Wish list request, this little set of stories is tied into my 'Master of Time' series (and even into my Atlantis fics). In that main story, however, Merlin's friends are reincarnated numerous times at significant points in history, with Arthur always playing a central role in some major political or historical event._

 _In between_ _those times, however, the immortal Emrys needs to find other things to keep him occupied._

* * *

 **Owl Post**

Merlin spent many years in the Crystal Cave, looking into the glowing, blue gems and viewing the past and the future.

He had seen ancient people in far off lands talk of magic in a way which seemed very familiar and, in the future, had seen that magic still existed here, although now it was kept secret from most who did not have the ability

That sounded familiar.

These little pieces of vision did not always make sense on their own, however, and it was a while before he managed to join up a couple of things he'd already discovered.

~o~0~o~

It all started when an owl flew into his cave.

Merlin stared at the bird perched on the top of one large crystal and blinked in surprise.

The owl blinked back.

"What are you doing here?" he asked.

Bats he was used to, owls... not so much.

The bird ruffled its feathers and stuck a leg out. Merlin continued to stare at it for a while and he was sure for a moment the bird rolled its eyes. "What?" This time when the leg was offered, Merlin saw a small, paper scroll attached to it. "Oh..."

 _Dear witch or wizard,_

 _These owls have been enchanted with the ability to seek out any strong use of magic in the hope of spreading this message as far around the country as possible._

 _As you know, the recent decision to separate magic users from those with no ability has meant a great deal of change in our world..._

Merlin looked up at the owl in surprise. "Oh, is it that time already? I loose track a bit in here."

Fairly inevitably, the bird didn't reply.

 _...Four of us have come together to create a school where we can educate the next generation. We are currently working on a variation of this owl enchantment which will allow us to identify any ten year old with magic potential and invited them to attend. The school is to be called Hogwarts and will be situated in the remote Highlands of Scotland._

 _We are currently looking to recruit powerful witches and wizards from all walks of life to assist us in this adventure. If you are interested, please attach a reply to the owl in front of you and it will automatically return to us,_

 _yours sincerely,_

 _Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw and Salazar Slytherin._

"Hmm, isn't _that_ interesting?" Merlin commented, hunting around for some parchment. "Well now, I suppose I've nothing better to do with my time at the moment, and it will be good to visit somewhere in person for a change."

He quickly wrote a reply of his own and sent the owl on its way.

~o~0~o~

Years went by and Merlin continued his travels, both in the real world and via the crystals, waiting for the next time his friends would be reincarnated. In the early years it could be very confusing, visiting the past and future and loosing track of time as a result. However, it wasn't long before he became very comfortable with the process, keeping track of people, places and events and making sure he was there in person if required.

The schools of magic, located in various places around the world, continued to be sources of very great interest for him.

Many years ago, he had made himself known to the four founders of Hogwarts as an old man, and they had all been in awe of his ability and perhaps, in a couple of cases, even a little jealous. He had briefly taught there in the school's early days, but found his skills were best used in the creation of various enchantments; helping with the spells to hide the castle from those without magic, creating protection spells and working to enhance the owl enchantment to ensure all talented children would be detected.

He was especially proud of his input on that last one, and having so much personal knowledge of it was to prove useful some years later when he became a little bored and decided he'd like to view Hogwarts from a student's point of view.

Knowing how easily the wizards could sense anyone with magic, Merlin had deliberately set things up so that his real name would never turn up in their records; creating a whole list of names - including his own in different languages, and those of old friends - and allowing the enchantments to choose random combinations every now and then. He also made sure that his day-to-day magic would not be detected by the school and set his own version of the Hogwart's enchantment to shield the Crystal Cave from the outside world too.

So, the wizards nowadays knew there had once been a powerful, elderly wizard named Merlin who had lived many centuries ago, but he had no intention of letting them know that the legends surrounding him were mostly true and that he was immortal; especially in light of what had happened in the late 1930s when a couple of young, powerful wizards became interested in acquiring that dubious gift for themselves. However, things were fairly quiet in the magic world at the moment and so Merlin cast a spell to make himself young. Not the young man guise he often used when travelling the world – the age he'd been when he knew Arthur – but a ten year old boy.

It was an extremely odd sensation.

Once he had got used to his new body and ensured all the enchantments were in place, Merlin moved out of the cave and cast a few random acts of magic - deliberately childish and sloppy - before settling down to wait for his letter to arrive.

~o~0~o~

* * *

 _ **A/N:** Part Two coming very soon. Currently this is only a two-shot but I may well continue at a later date. Prompts most welcome._


	2. Chapter 2: The Hatstall

**The Hatstall**

 **1982**

"Arthur Wyltt."

Merlin's random name had ensured he was the last of the new first years to be called up to the front of the Great Hall, and he walked nervously up to the seat and waited for the far-too-large Sorting Hat to be placed on his head.

" _Now then..."_ said the hat. _"Aren't you an odd one?"_

" _Ah... Thanks?"_

" _No, I mean... I really don't have any idea where to place you. You could go almost anywhere... be. almost anyone. You certainly have a great deal of bravery and intelligence but also a surprising amount of ruthlessness for one so young and yet... so much kindness in you too. I'm not sure I've ever had to Sort anyone quite so confusing."_

" _And again... thanks."_

" _And wise beyond your years but..."_

Merlin wondered if the pause seemed quite as long to everyone else.

" _So, if you can't decide, does that mean that I get to choose which house I go into?"_ he asked when he could bear the wait no longer.

" _Well, there's perhaps a little biased towards Slytherin here..."_ Merlin wasn't surprised. That had been his house when he'd first visited here. Now, however, he was thinking it might be a good idea to keep a low profile, pretend to be rather less than he was, just as he once had in Camelot.

" _Oh well, if you insist..."_ The Sorting Hat said eventually. "Hufflepuff!"

~o~0~o~

"Mr Wyltt." The transfiguration teacher called his name out softly as the class started to make its way out of the room. Merlin blinked and turned, walking back to the desk.

"Yes, Professor Dumbldore?" he asked respectfully.

The man peered at him, his gaze penetrating. Merlin was started to feel a little uncomfortable. He tried to remember that he was, in fact, considerably older than the man in front of him and probably more powerful, but it didn't really help. He fidgeted.

"How are you enjoying Hogwarts, Arthur?"

"Oh, very much, Professor. It's most interesting."

"Any problems with any of your subjects?"

"Well no, not really. Just..."

"Yes?"

"I'm not so sure about this wand really. I know it's supposed to have chosen me but..."

The professor continued to stare at him. "Tell me, did you do much magic before receiving your letter?"

"When I was young things... just used to happen," he replied truthfully. "Sometimes it's hard to get used to using … these spells."

Again the absolute truth. He was finding using a wand and casting spells in the 'wrong' language, quite challenging. Luckily, these issues were probably making it easier to fit in – to hide just how much ability he really had.

"There's just something... about you and the way you use your magic," Dumbledore said thoughtfully. "Something... instinctive."

"Oh, really?" he replied, trying to act innocent.

"Are you _certain_ there's nothing you wish to tell me, Mr Wyltt?"

There was another long pause.

"Ah, no... nothing, Professor. I'm sure I'll get the hang of these spells soon enough."

Again Dumbledore just started at him for a very long time before shaking his head. "No, that's fine. You should probably head off to your potions lesson. Give Professor Slughorn my apologies for delaying you."

Merlin frowned before nodding his head. "Yes, thank you, Professor." He left, frowning slightly. There was no doubt that Dumbledore was a very powerful wizard but, surely even he wouldn't have the ability to see through this disguise? He made a note to be especially cautious around the Transfiguration teacher from this point onwards.

~o~0~o~

* * *

 _ **A/N:** Just a couple of connected stories about how _ our _Merlin might fit into 'modern' Hogwarts, written for Christmas wishlists. I have a few random idea about other chapters but this is currently less of a multi-chapter story and more a series of snapshots. So, I've nothing further to share **at the moment,**_ _but that may well change depending on how the plot bunnies behave._


End file.
